Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

You may make these changes on WebReg up to the published deadlines.

• Add or drop a course: Friday of Week 2 at 5 p.m.
• Change grading option or variable units via WebReg: Friday of Week 2 at 5 p.m.
• Change grading option or variable units, Weeks 3–10: until Friday of Week 10 at 5 p.m., request via Student Access → Applications → Enrollment Exception.

To request a drop after the deadline, submit an Enrollment Exception. Social Ecology typically allows one late drop after UCI's standard Week 2 deadline without special justification. Each student is permitted one late drop total during their time at UCI. Additional late drop requests will be considered only with documented extenuating circumstances preventing participation in the specific course.

Late drops are not allowed in certain circumstances. Students are responsible for any consequences if a late drop is approved, such as effects on financial aid, housing, or visa status.

No more than an average of four units per quarter, multiplied by the number of quarters in residence at UCI. School and major requirements must be taken for a letter grade.

Student-athletes, please email se.advising@uci.edu with your Athletic Planning Guide. The office will route it to the appropriate counselor for processing. If the counselor has follow-up questions, they will contact your UCI email.

Your class level is determined by the number of units you have completed:

A hold is placed on a student's record by certain offices (e.g., academic counseling offices, Office of Admissions). That office must remove the hold before the student can enroll in classes. Check your UCI Email- holds are typically placed after you've been emailed multiple times and have not taken action on something that is required. 

A formal Reduced Fee Part-Time Study Program application is available via StudentAccess → Applications. It is granted by the academic unit for reasons of occupation (>30 hrs/wk), health (illness), or family responsibility. Fees include the full university registration fee and one-half the education fee. Enrollment is limited to 10 units or less per quarter.

If you wish to drop ALL your courses and withdraw from the term after paying tuition and fees, you must request a Withdrawal.

• Submit a withdrawal form before 4:59 p.m. on the last day of instruction.
• Do not drop any of your courses. Your classes will be dropped automatically during the withdrawal process.
• Do not stop payment on the check used to pay tuition and fees instead of filing the withdrawal form.
• To drop only one course, use WebReg through Week 2, or Enrollment Exceptions after Week 2. Do not use the withdrawal application.

Readmission into a major or academic department is subject to academic unit approval and campus deadlines. A $70 non-refundable application fee and good academic standing (upon leaving) are required. You can request that your readmission to the School of Social Ecology be reviewed via our Readmission Information page. See the University's General Catalogue for more information.

The School of Social Ecology is not accepting Second Baccalaureate applications.

For a list of other majors open to Second Baccalaureate applicants, visit admissions.uci.edu/applicants/second_baccalaureate.html.

Visit the DegreeWorks information page to learn more about DegreeWorks nuances.

GE Category V can be satisfied in two ways:

• Take 2 courses from Category Va and 1 course from Category Vb, or
• Take 1 course from Category Va and 2 courses from Category Vb.

DegreeWorks defaults to showing Category V as 1 course from Va and 2 courses from Vb.

If you took (or want to take) 2 courses from Va and plan to finish by taking only 1 course from Vb, please submit a DegreeWorks Update form.

If you're unsure, contact us!

Once you have completed 120 units, you may apply by submitting the online Application for Graduation through StudentAccess. We encourage you to apply as soon as possible, ideally before the 7th week of the quarter prior to when you plan to finish. Example: if you plan to finish in Spring, apply before the end of Week 7 in Winter.

Of the graduating seniors in the School of Social Ecology (majors in CLS, PSCI, SE, UPPP), approximately 12 percent will be awarded Latin honors: 1 percent summa cum laude, 3 percent magna cum laude, and 8 percent cum laude. Honors are based on a student's cumulative GPA at the end of their final term at UCI.

The university calculates eligibility from historical data. The GPAs of students who received summa, magna, and cum laude honors over the past three years are averaged, and those averages are used to determine the top 12% of the year's graduating class.

Cut-offs for the upcoming year will be available in mid-August. Students must adhere to UCI's academic honesty policy and have no charges of academic dishonesty on their record. In addition, students must complete 72 quarter units in residence at a UC campus by the end of their final term at UCI.

More information and current cut-offs are on the Registrar's Latin Honors webpage..

Yes. Undergraduates who graduate with Latin or Campuswide Honors will have this noted on their diploma beneath the University Seal. Honors are also posted to academic transcripts approximately 8 weeks after you complete your degree requirements.

Students graduating with honors are recognized in the UCI Commencement Program:

• Summer, Fall, or Winter graduates: actual honors are noted.
• Spring graduates: listed as eligible for honors (based on winter cumulative GPA).
• Students completing their degrees in the upcoming summer: honors appear in the next year's program.

Cap and gown, senior portrait, and commencement ceremony information is on the Commencement website.

If you are applying for a job or graduate school and must provide proof of degree completion before your degree has posted to your transcript, you may request a Degree Verification Letter. See the Degree Verification page for details.

The Career Center and Graduate Resource Center are excellent resources for preparing for and applying to graduate programs.

If you have completed an introductory statistics course at UCI (MGMT 7 or STATS 7, BIO SCI 7/STATS 8, SOC SCI 10 A-B-C, etc.) or an approved introductory statistics course from a community college, you can clear SocEcol 13 without a petition. Fill out a DegreeWorks Update form to have SocEcol 13 marked as complete in DegreeWorks.

If you took an introductory statistics course at another college or university, see How do I petition to waive a course?

• Directed Studies (SocEcol 198) may be taken for 1–4 units of elective credit. In the School of Social Ecology it is available for P/NP grading ONLY. Its primary purpose is to give students preliminary exposure to research by assisting a faculty member or graduate student, for example by interviewing subjects, doing computer coding, or doing library research.
• Special Studies (SocEcol 199) may be taken for 1–4 units of elective credit. Four units of graded SocEcol 199 may be petitioned to be used in lieu of one upper-division Social Ecology course. Students are generally more deeply involved in research methodologies, either assisting a faculty member with an ongoing project or pursuing a specific area of interest only briefly covered in class. Students may also pursue an idea of their own with the help of a Social Ecology faculty member.

Urban Studies, Planning, and Policy majors can augment their training with a degree specialization in Geographic Information Systems (GIS). Required courses:

• UPPP 120 Introduction to GIS for Planning and Policy
• UPPP 125 Advanced GIS
• UPPP 127 Special Topics in Urban Studies (GIS Capstone)

Courses taken for the GIS Specialization can be used toward the Urban Studies major.

Once you have begun coursework at UCI and declared a major, you cannot return to a community college to complete General Education/Breadth writing requirements. You may take courses to fulfill some or all of your other General Education requirements, elective units, or lower-division Social Ecology school or major requirements. Check assist.org to see which courses transfer to UCI or satisfy UCI's General Education, school, or major requirements. Please see an academic counselor if you wish to take courses outside UCI.

Important things to remember:

1. There is a limit of 105 quarter units (70 semester units) that you may transfer from a community college.
2. Your GPA for community college courses does not transfer.
3. You are responsible for knowing whether you have already taken the same course at UCI or another college. You will not receive additional credit for a duplicate course.

If you believe you have fulfilled a course required for your major or General Education requirements, you may petition the course. The Course Waiver Petition is for courses taken at another college or university that does not already have an articulation agreement with UCI. Petition processing takes approximately six to eight weeks.

California community colleges listed on ASSIST: Use assist.org to identify courses that transfer to UCI and satisfy General Education requirements. If your courses are listed there, you do not need to petition through our office. Send official transcripts to UCI Undergraduate Admissions to have your work evaluated for unit credit. Once the course(s) appear in the Electives section of DegreeWorks, submit a DegreeWorks Update Form to have them reflected.

Colleges not listed on ASSIST, or other four-year universities: Consult an academic counselor before you enroll. After completing the course(s), have your transcript sent to UCI Undergraduate Admissions, then submit a Course Waiver Petition to have the course(s) evaluated for UCI credit.

If you plan to take any of these courses in your last year at UC Irvine (e.g., your last 36 units), consult an academic counselor regarding senior residency.

Visit the UCI Division of Continuing Education: Concurrent Enrollment for information on enrolling in courses.

If you plan to take SocEcol 195 Field Study through UCI Concurrent Enrollment, you must notify Field Study Staff. Once you have been approved and authorized for Field Study, you are guaranteed a seat in one of the SocEcol 195 courses. We cannot guarantee which course will be available, so be flexible with your schedule.

You must submit official transcripts to UCI Undergraduate Admissions to receive credit. Courses are NOT transferred automatically.

Download the 4-Year Roadmap handout (PDF).

Academic misconduct, in its most basic form, is gaining or attempting to gain a grade, degree, or other academic accomplishment by any means other than your own work. See UCI's Office of Academic Integrity and Student Conduct for more information.

GPA stands for Grade Point Average and is the average of all classes taken. The average of classes taken at UCI or any other UC campus is your UC GPA. Grades earned at other four-year universities or community colleges are not included.

1. Convert your grades to grade points (see table below).
2. For each class, multiply the class units by the grade points (e.g., a B+ in a 4-unit class = 3.3 × 4 = 13.2 grade points).
3. Add up your total grade points and your total units attempted.
4. Divide total grade points by total units. This is your GPA.

Your overall GPA is also calculated each quarter and posted on your transcript.

Grades of Pass (P), No Pass (NP), Withdraw (W), Unauthorized Repeat (UR), Incomplete (I), and In Progress (IP) are not included in the grade point average that appears on the permanent record.

The Dean's Honor List is a transcript notation for students who achieve a quarterly GPA of 3.5 or better in a minimum of 12 graded units.

The School of Social Ecology reviews your GPA in four areas:

• Overall GPA: all classes taken at UCI and any other UC campus attended. Grades from other schools (e.g., community colleges) are not included.
• Major GPA: the upper-division major and school requirements you have taken.
• School and Major GPA: all classes required for your major, including all letter-graded lower-division school and major requirements, letter-graded upper-division school requirements, and any upper-division classes taken in your major.
• Quarter GPA: the most recent term in which you received grades.

To remain eligible to graduate, all four GPAs must be at least 2.0.

If your quarterly or overall GPA falls below 2.0 at the end of any quarter (Fall-Spring), you will be notified that you are on Academic Notice until you raise the GPA(s) to 2.0 or above. 

The grade Incomplete (I) may be assigned when a student's work is of passing quality but is incomplete for good cause. The student must make arrangements with their instructor to complete the coursework within a period of no more than 12 months following the term in which the grade Incomplete was originally awarded, or prior to the end of the quarter immediately preceding award of the degree, whichever comes first. The instructor is not obligated to allow the maximum time period. The student should not reenroll in the course to make up the Incomplete.

Incomplete (I) grades will convert to a failing grade (F), not pass (NP), or unsatisfactory (U), whichever is appropriate, after remaining on the student's record for 12 months, as governed by Irvine Academic Senate Regulation IR A345.

P/NP is a grading option in which letter grades are not assigned. Only Pass (equal to "C-" or better) or Not Pass (equal to "D+" or below; no course or unit credit earned) is recorded. P/NP marks are not calculated into your GPA. Unless a course is designated P/NP only, school and major requirements may not be taken P/NP.

"IP" stands for In Progress and is restricted to sequential courses. It indicates that the grade will be determined and assigned when the entire sequence of courses is complete.

"NR" means No Report of a grade from the instructor. Contact the course instructor immediately to have the "NR" removed or replaced. An "NR" becomes an "F" one quarter after it is assigned, and it can only be changed by the instructor who assigned it.

"UR" flags a course that the Office of Admissions and Relations with Schools has determined to be an Unauthorized Repeat of a course the student already took and passed at UCI or another college or university. No unit credit is given for courses marked "UR".

A "W" is assigned to your transcript when a course is dropped after the sixth week of the quarter. It does not negatively impact your GPA. It only indicates that you were enrolled beyond the sixth week, not whether you were passing or failing. 

Undergraduates may repeat classes in which they received a "C-", "D+", "D", "D-", "F", or NP. Degree credit for repeated courses is given only once, but the grade from each enrollment is permanently recorded on your transcript. For the first 16 units repeated, only the most recent grade is used in your GPA. If you repeat more than 16 units, the GPA is based on all additional grades assigned.

Classes originally taken for a letter grade CANNOT be repeated on a P/NP basis.